


and i ask the waves to return you

by andthencoffee (yawawoo)



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Drunkenness, Friends to Lovers, Happy Ending, Light Angst, M/M, Merpeople, Modern-day fairytale, Pining, Swearing, references to drowning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-15
Updated: 2020-04-15
Packaged: 2021-03-01 17:13:40
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,186
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23660614
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/yawawoo/pseuds/andthencoffee
Summary: Jaehyun disappears into the sea, but Johnny refuses to believe his best friend is really gone.“Aren’t you cold?” Johnny asks into the dark of the night. He thinks about how cold the water is, thinks about Jaehyun in winter with his red nose and red ears and Johnny sobs because he misses him so much. “It’s cold. I’m cold. The water’s cold, Jaehyun-ah… come out… come back to me...”(Spoiler alert: Jaehyun comes back, but with a surprise)
Relationships: Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun/Suh Youngho | Johnny
Comments: 20
Kudos: 136





	and i ask the waves to return you

**Author's Note:**

> I just hope you guys give this mess of a story a chance lmao idek anymore :'D
> 
> Thanks Jamie for looking this over and being there while I was stressing over this!
> 
> This is for Willy who I've tormented with sneak peeks lmao and for everyone who loves JohnJae. Especially cheesy JohnJae ;)
> 
> (Also you can probably tell I've never actually been drunk but I researched ok)
> 
> ENJOY :D

Technically, Jaehyun knows that the only way to really stop his heart from shattering into a million pieces from the weight of jealousy is to cross the makeshift dance floor and drag Johnny away by the collar of his stupid, shimmery black button down. Just… take him away _somewhere._ Jaehyun hasn't really figured out what’s next.

Why his roommate is dressed up like they're in a club and not some college party is beyond Jaehyun right now. He knows somewhere in the edge of his mind that Johnny's just so naturally chic like that–and that Jaehyun _loves_ it when he's all edgy and aesthetic, but something burns bitterly on the back of his tongue whenever _that_ results in people that aren't him ogling Johnny.

Fuck.

He's really reaching the next level of pathetic drunk. And he's only slightly above tipsy. 

Jaehyun has long since given up on the notion of liquid courage. Alcohol turns him into a sad boy who wallows internally about his huge ass, 2-year-old crush on his roommate: Johnny Suh. (His best bro. His coffee and wine mate). Instead of courageous, inebriated Jaehyun just turns all mushy and shy and lowkey stressed from holding back his feelings. He gets _too_ in touch with his own feelings when he's drunk. What a fucking joke, right.

How is he even supposed to drink his problems away once he's a proper adult with _actual_ adult problems? Like paying taxes, and military enlistment? He can't even stop jealousy from eating him from the inside out at the mere sight of Johnny enjoying himself, of his carefree grin directed to all the boys surrounding him. 

Perhaps the bitterness is multiplied because those boys are their mutual friends. Jaehyun had no idea Kun could move his hips like that. Why is Yuta suddenly so good at twerking? Why are they laughing? What's so funny about it? Does Johnny actually have feelings for someone else?

"You should tone down the staring a little or you'll start shooting lasers from your eyes for real," a lazy voice drawls. Sicheng apparently has found refuge in the remaining space of the couch that Jaehyun is hogging without him noticing. There's a half empty cup in his hand, an unopened chocolate bar in the other.

"I'm pathetic," Jaehyun grunts, running a frustrated hand through his bangs and sitting back with a whump. He doesn’t elaborate, just plays with the metal bracelet around his wrist. When Jaehyun steals a glance at his other best friend, he finds that Sicheng is also observing the sight of their friends on the dance floor.

"Don't worry, at least you're not alone," Sicheng says with a sneer. Alcohol makes Sicheng a lot chattier and kind of scary, but he's no better than Jaehyun because he's been keeping silent about his crush on Yuta for even longer than Jaehyun does with his own crush on Johnny. "You wanna get some air?"

Jaehyun nods without hesitation, feeling ready to combust from suppressed feelings. He’s thought about a change of scenery before, but he figures it’s pointless if he’s just gonna end up alone with his own thoughts. He’s not going to refuse Sicheng’s timely invite.

Sicheng drops his cup on the nearest flat surface that happens to be a pile of automotive magazines by the side of the couch. He languidly rises from his perch on the sofa and extends a hand for Jaehyun to take. Sicheng's palm is warm when Jaehyun takes it and allows his friend to pull him up.

The venue they rented for the MT is just a five-minute walk from the sea, so they are greeted by a slightly salty night breeze when he and Sicheng manage to safely exit the residential area and trudge into the streets. Sicheng runs down the sloped, empty roads and starts posing under the streetlights, and Jaehyun is glad for the distraction as he pulls out his phone to take his pictures.

They reach the streets overlooking the beach where eateries and street carts lined up on one side are keeping all the people and tourists of the town busy. The smell of hot fish cakes and soju permeate the air, the ruckus of drunken laughters and the clinking of tableware and shot glasses a welcome noise. The sea breeze is a sobering chill, pushing Jaehyun and Sicheng to huddle close as they stroll down the street in silence.

Sicheng stops in front of a large convenience store with outdoor tables, some occupied by people slurping down instant noodles and popping soda bottles, noisy as they tap away at the screen of their phones. Jaehyun spies the games they play. It’s one that’s currently popular but he never really catches the hype.

“Do you want ramen?” Sicheng asks as he pats his jean pockets. He frowns. “Nevermind. I don’t know where my phone and wallet are.”

“I’ve got enough money in my LINE Pay I think,” Jaehyun hands him his phone. “The password is… Johnny’s birthday but with my birth year.”

Sicheng doesn’t even blink at the revelation; he just looks at Jaehyun evenly with a small smile. “Okay. What do you want?”

“Black coffee. And triangle kimbap.”

Sicheng nods, not even questioning his choice of beverage. “Do you think it’s too cold to eat by the sea?”

“I’ll find us a spot.”

Jaehyun turns away once Sicheng gives him a nod and starts down the winding, slanted cement that connects the road and the beach. At the end of it, Jaehyun takes off his sneakers and stuffs his socks into them. The breeze is kind of really chilly as he sinks his bare feet into the sand, scanning the shoreline and spotting no one else there.

Jaehyun took slow, measured steps as he tries to find a spot that can shelter them from the wind, because at this point he feels like he's gonna catch a cold. If he does, then he will be miserable tomorrow and will have to rest instead of joining the activities scheduled tomorrow. They won’t have enough people to document their activities. He will have to miss the chance to take pictures and play group games with Johnny.

Oh, Johnny. Jaehyun hates how easy it is for his head to be filled with thoughts about the stupidly gorgeous man, for the center of his chest to clench with all the things Johnny makes him feel.

Jaehyun can imagine, if his emotions were a tangible thing, there being a dark cloud crawling over his head as he remembers the reason why he's freezing his balls off at 11 in the evening on a random beach. Thoughts about Johnny, the ones he’s been trying to distract himself from, come rushing like unbridled waves, not unlike the night tides of the ocean in front of him.

Johnny is a lot of things. Meeting the older boy two years ago when Jaehyun transferred into their major almost feels like one of the most monumental moments in his life. Jaehyun has never before experienced a friendship that develops as easily as theirs; and no one has made it easier for him to fall in love than Johnny. Jaehyun has always worried if it’s just too easy.

Johnny is a lot of things, and he's just… so radiant. While Jaehyun sometimes also has a horde of people blocking his way in school hallways, trying to talk to him or give him food, Johnny is just on a whole different level. He has the energy to smile and have small talk with anyone that approaches him, always has a joke to tell, effortless in his friendliness, while Jaehyun some days finds it hard to even spare anyone not in his friend group a smile.

But that's… Jaehyun likes that. Jaehyun likes the fact that Johnny is friendly and outgoing and kind and loved by many, because he deserves all that love, all that attention. He readily receives what people give him, and returns them the best he can. He’s so magnetic people can’t help but gravitate to him. But here’s the thing that makes Jaehyun feel different; despite having so many friends, Johnny never cancels their plans for anyone else. Like at the end of the day, it’s them staying late in the library or tidying up the faculty’s darkroom. 

Here’s another thing that helps the tiny sprout of hope grow in Jaehyun’s unsure heart: Johnny was the one who suggested that they become roommates a year into their friendship. And Jaehyun doesn’t want to read too much into things, he really doesn’t, but he can’t help but wonder sometimes. It’s no secret that Johnny’s an only child from quite a well-off family. He could afford to live in the dormitory until he graduates, but he chose to share a thirty-minute walk apartment in the edge of the city with Jaehyun.

Being roommates with Johnny was fun until Jaehyun started to realize that the tiny crush he'd had from their very first meeting really wasn't tiny at all. It grew and grew. It grew when Johnny bought a French press and started making coffee for the both of them. It grew when he gave Jaehyun soft hoodies to wear to sleep. It grew when Johnny suggested that they make a joint Instagram account for their portfolio. It grew when they started collecting wine and Jaehyun got to witness the slow process of a flush forming on Johnny's face.

The thing is, when it comes to Johnny, Jaehyun's an unconfident mess. Johnny still feels like a larger-than-life entity that's somewhat still out of his reach. Johnny has completely taken over Jaehyun's life and the rolls of his camera, and his mind, and his heart. Jaehyun used to think that if he finally liked someone, he'd be brave and tell them his feelings. He'd face them head on, ready for any kind of response.

But if Johnny doesn't like him back and leaves, what does Jaehyun have left?

In his trance, Jaehyun doesn't realize that he's reached the damp sand, and his toes are already submerged in the oncoming wave. It's cold, but somehow he doesn't care. He crouches down, puts his shoes somewhere safe behind him, and gazes out towards the dark horizon. He can see the silhouette of a fishing boat if he squints, its lights a distant blink in the merged line of sea and sky.

The full moon is unusually huge, its reflection a silver ripple on the surface of the water. There's… someone emerging from the water, right under moonlight. Jaehyun can't see their face, but he is sure they're smiling at him. Beckoning. 

Jaehyun feels a strange call guiding him to the sea. To walk to that smiling figure, glistening under the full moon.

"It's alright," a voice says to him. "Come drown your sorrows. It'll be alright soon."

There’s no one to see him walk straight into the waves.

  
  
  


**〰〰〰**

  
  
  


The next day, police lines block people from entering the beach. Johnny sits alone on the cement parapets along the road parallel to the shore, clutching an expired triangle kimbap and a cup of cold, stale convenience store coffee, staring at a pair of sneakers on the sand in the distance. The police take pictures of them, in an angle that’s technical.

The next week, Johnny takes a break from school and rents a unit at an apartment building near the beach. He sits on the beach until he feels like passing out, sleeps in his room, gets his meals from the convenience store—kimbap and coffee, coffee and kimbap—and waits. Sometimes he walks around. But mostly he waits, because he refuses to believe that Jung Jaehyun is gone.

  
  
  
  


**〰〰〰**

  
  
  
  


It's been two weeks, three days, and twenty hours since Johnny rented a studio apartment closest to the sea. There’s a bed, and a strangely complete bathroom with a bathtub. Johnny doesn't want to think about other things he can do in it except for actually bathing. Bad thoughts.

So, Jaehyun disappeared. Also a bad thought, but what else is he even supposed to think about?

Johnny can’t even look at Sicheng in a neutral way anymore, even though he knows it’s not his fault ( _but it is, he was the one who brought Jaehyun to the beach_ , _the last person with him,_ whispers an angry voice every time) _._ And Johnny has a hard time trying not to feel bitter when this misfortune finally brought Sicheng and Yuta together. 

Johnny knows he’s being a terrible friend, but he’s just _so_ lonely, and there’s nothing that can preserve his sanity except distancing himself from everyone else. Johnny prefers that he’s terrible and miserable alone, even though he can’t deny that he’s even more lonely and pathetic without the support of his friends. But they don’t need to see the way he’s falling apart.

The police and the coast guard told Jaehyun's parents that they would keep searching for a week. Then they came up empty handed, not even with enough evidence to conclude what happened after carefully going through Jaehyun’s things, his friends, the townspeople present. But they wouldn't believe it when Johnny told them there was no way Jaehyun would just disappear like that. 

In the end, they told everyone that maybe it was just an unfortunate event. A drunk young man versus the high tides. They left, Jaehyun's parents left, his mother hugging Johnny long and tight like she knew how lost Johnny feels.

Sometimes the grief—Johnny doesn’t _want_ to admit that he’s grieving, because that would mean that Jaehyun—no, he _isn’t—_ sometimes it’s so suffocating that Johnny just wants to escape from his own skin. To make it all stop. Sometimes he can’t stand himself just sitting around waiting for Jaehyun to come back. On those days Johnny will get up and just run. Sprint down the sloping roads, away from the beach, hoping he could outrun his thoughts.

Most nights Johnny sits down on the sand, quite a ways from the water. He knows there's a coast guard somewhere keeping an eye on him. Each time, Johnny sits down with varying amounts and types of alcohol and drinks until he finishes everything. He always makes it back alive to his apartment, so he keeps it up even when the cashier at the convenience store has started to throw him worried looks as she scans his five bottles of soju.

Tonight isn’t any different. More soju, the same feeling of being watched, the same empty world without Jaehyun. Johnny takes another sip, the damp orifice of the bottle cooled by the night breeze.

Johnny can’t remember how many bottles he's emptied this time—he doesn’t want to look at the mess around him and actually count the green bottles. He doesn’t need a concrete proof to further back up the fact that he is a sad, drunk mess. He feels like it, and with each mouthful of soju, he waits for his senses to dull, to numb the pain enough and cover the Jaehyun-sized hole in the hollow of his chest.

“I can’t even look at our wine stash, so now I'm stuck with soju, cuz vodka is disgusting,” Johnny whines woefully and drunkenly into the night, hoping Jaehyun hears him this time because apparently threatening to drink all his Cabernet yesterday didn’t work. So Johnny choses honesty. “I can’t even enter our apartment without wanting to fucking break down in tears, Jaehyun-ah.”

Just like the previous nights, Johnny talks and talks to the sea breeze. Recounting all the things they’d done together, anecdotes, stupid inside jokes between the two of them. Talking and talking like Jaehyun’s there beside him, always listening, always so attentive, dimpled smile at the ready. Talking and talking until everything starts to come out in a slurred mess. Doesn’t think about why this is affecting him so much. Doesn’t think of words he hasn’t said to Jaehyun.

“Aren’t you cold?” Johnny asks into the dark of the night. He thinks about how cold the water is, thinks about Jaehyun in winter with his red nose and red ears and Johnny sobs because he misses him so much. “It’s cold. I’m cold. The water’s cold, Jaehyun-ah… come out… come back to me...”

Johnny doesn’t bother wiping at the tears running down his cheeks. He lets them cool in the evening wind, salty, and Johnny wonders if the sea tastes like his tears. He hangs his head and takes a fistful of sand, opening his hand to let the grains escape between his fingers. Slipping away. A sharp pain surges in his chest at the thought of Jaehyun, at the thought of never seeing him again.

Johnny looks up, swallows the lump in his throat and blinks away the unshed tears. The crescent moon is a blur through his damp eyes. Its reflection on the surface of the sea is never still, ebbing and flowing together with the waves. And then Johnny sees it.

There’s something breaking out of the water. Human-shaped. The silhouette rises from the waves slowly, water sliding off the seemingly naked body. Skinny-dipping at this hour? That's crazy and somewhat brave, Johnny thinks, glad for the distraction. He never notices when this person joins him at the beach.

The silhouette, a man, it seems, drags itself from the deep waters to the shore. Under the blue light of night, Johnny can see the pale skin of broad shoulders, arms wading through the water. There’s something familiar about the man. The shape of his head, his build. The man finally made it out of the water. He’s completely naked. Then he collapses as if losing all the strength from his knees.

Johnny is standing up before his muddled brain can even process what’s happening. He looks around—there’s no one, not even the coast guard, _what the fuck,_ on the beach. The road behind him is devoid of sound, not even drunk people going home from the street carts. There’s only the sound of waves and his own heartbeat.

Johnny approaches the figure on the shore. Is he dead? Should he call the police?

But then Johnny stops in his tracks because he spots the glint of a metal bracelet around the man’s wrist. He _knows_ that bracelet. He was there when Jaehyun bought it for himself on White Day. 

Johnny drops his soju bottle and runs. Or he tries to, because the sand sinks with the force of his feet. He stumbles, the knees of his jeans stained with sand, but he keeps his eye on that figure. He doesn't dare blink lest he disappears again.

Johnny falls to his knees beside the limp, damp body. His hands tremble as they hover hesitantly over the man's bare shoulders. With a ragged breath Johnny turns the body over. A gasp leaves his chest as soon as he sees that familiar face.

Jaehyun has his eyes shut, his eyebrows pinched like he's in pain, lips twisted and murmuring lowly, feverishly. Johnny wants to cry. Johnny can feel how cold Jaehyun's skin is under his palms. Can see the heavy movements of his chest.

"Jaehyun? Jung Jaehyun? Jaehyun-ah, can you hear me?" Johnny asks as he cradles his face, wiping away the grains of sand that sticks to the side of Jaehyun's face and hair. "I'll call for help, okay? You hang in there, Jaehyun. Hang in there."

Johnny reaches for his phone. It's not in the pockets of his hoodie, nor in his jeans. He curses when he spies his coral iPhone in the middle of the pile of his soju bottles. Johnny is just about to run back to get it when Jaehyun grabs his arm with a surprising strength.

“Home… take me home...” Jaehyun pleads weakly.

  
  


**〰〰〰**

  
  


By some luck, there’s no one at the lobby of Johnny's apartment building, and he jogs towards the elevator as quickly as he can with an armful of an unconscious male adult. Johnny has tried his best to cover Jaehyun's lower body with his hoodie. The late hour allows no wait time as the doors immediately open, and Johnny carefully maneuvers through it and makes sure nothing hits anything. 

It’s a bit of a struggle to press on the button of his floor, especially since he’s starting to feel the strain in his arms. Something fierce burns in him and prevents him from giving up. He hugs Jaehyun’s cool body closer and tighter as the lift ascends three floors up.

Once inside, Johnny uses the last of his strength to put Jaehyun down onto the bed gently. As soon as he pulls his arms from under Jaehyun, Johnny collapses to the floor, his upper body sprawled on the bed. His lungs and whole body burn with exertion, his head is pounding like a hangover comes early. 

It takes his remaining energy and consciousness to pull the blanket over Jaehyun's body. He seeks out Jaehyun’s hand under the fabric, squeezing it, making sure he has him, that he’s not going to disappear. Then Johnny succumbs to the pull of exhausted sleep. He thinks maybe Jaehyun squeezes his hand back.

  
  
  
  


**〰〰〰**

  
  
  
  


Hours later, Johnny wakes with a start. His butt is cold and his arms feel like lead. And the headache. He no longer panics when he feels the world spinning, though. He's woken up with it enough times for the past two weeks. Then things start to come back to him one by one.

"Fuck, I littered at the beach… my soju bottles…" Johnny groans because that's the first thing he remembers. Then he realizes his hand is really clammy. And there's Jaehyun on the bed in front of him. "Oh my god."

Johnny rarely feels so lost in life before Jaehyun. But now he feels it, can feel the questions and panic and worry bubbling up his stomach and he crosses the short distance to the bathroom and retches into the toilet. His headache intensifies, and he throws up so hard his eyes burn.

Johnny knows he's sort of really sick. He feels like his body's burning, but everything is too cold to the touch. But he can't just stay slumped on his bathroom floor like this. Jaehyun is here. He's back and he's not waking up and Johnny's phone is at the beach, probably gone already. There's no landline phone in his unit either.

After rinsing his mouth and drinking as much water as he can, Johnny paces and paces beside the bed. He can’t believe his eyes. Is it really Jaehyun he pulls out of the water? That face, that nose, lips, hair. Yes, that's Jung Jaehyun. But why is he not waking up? Is _Johnny_ going to wake up from all this?

Jaehyun moves in his sleep, twitching like shocks are running through his body. He groans like he’s in pain, and Johnny darts to his side as quickly as humanly possible.

“Jaehyun-ah? Hey, it’s me,” Johnny whispers, eyes nervously darting about Jaehyun's face, looking for the smallest change.

Jaehyun opens his eyes slowly, his brown eyes visible through the narrow slits of his lids. His lips are so chapped Johnny fears they're gonna bleed. "Water…" Jaehyun says.

Johnny helps him go through five medium-sized bottles of mineral water from the fridge. Five, and Jaehyun seems like he still wants more. But he doesn't ask for more. He closes his eyes and breathes strangely, in weird intervals like he's not sure how. Worry gnaws at Johnny's mind, but he's too afraid to say anything. He never looks away from Jaehyun's face.

Eventually Jaehyun's breathing slows to a normal rhythm. He opens his eyes, looking straight into Johnny's. He's biting his lower lip, and Johnny wishes Jaehyun doesn't have to make such an unsure expression around him. Johnny knows that the other man is having a hard time choosing what to do or say next.

“Hyung, would you… help me to the bathroom, please?”

Johnny can only nod, removing the blanket in one pull when he sees Jaehyun trying to get it away from his person. "Of course. Of course, Jaehyun-ah."

It looks like it takes all of Jaehyun’s strength to loop an arm around Johnny’s neck. Once it feels like Jaehyun’s got a secure hold, they begin the short track to the bathroom. Johnny is ready to stop by the toilet and help Jaehyun remove his hoodie from around his waist, but Jaehyun drags his feet to the bathtub, and settles in it.

Okay. Okay. So Jung Jaehyun is not dead and he's naked in Johnny's bathtub and Johnny doesn't know what to do. "I don't know what to do," Johnny admits out loud.

Jaehyun shifts forward to turn the taps before settling back into his previous position. It looks like he's avoiding looking at Johnny directly, and in the morning light Johnny can see the way his ears are reddening. "I'm going to show you something. And all I can ask of you is to not panic, hyung. Promise me you won't."

Johnny doesn't get it, but what can he say to that? Jaehyun can ask him to bring him the moon and Johnny will seriously consider how to do it. "Alright. I promise."

Jaehyun nods, still not looking at Johnny, focusing instead on the way the tub slowly fills up with water. "You might want to sit down."

And Johnny sits on the toilet lid. And then they wait. The water rises and Johnny tries not to stare at Jaehyun's flawless skin on full display, and tries not to drown himself in questions. It feels like forever until Jaehyun turns off the taps.

Then something happens.

There's a strange glow coming from Jaehyun's submerged lower body down to his toes. And then there are emerald green _scales_ appearing from the sides of his hips and thighs and legs and feet, wrapping over his flesh rapidly, gleaming silver in the shifting light. Then translucent _fins_ start to grow out of what was once his feet—as wide as Jaehyun's hips and long enough that the tips jut out from the surface of the water.

Johnny doesn't even remember he has a mouth at this moment, despite having it open in shock. He can only stare, wide eyed, as Jaehyun just transformed into a _merman_ in front of his own eyes. What the fuck.

"Surprise?" Jaehyun says, huffing out a laugh that's a weird mix of amusement and nervousness. Johnny looks at his face and sees all the emotions there; fear is also threatening to take over the forced grin on Jaehyun's face. It doesn't belong on his face.

"Did your dick just disappear?"

Johnny's question echoes in the bathroom, loud in the silence that ensues. Jaehyun's eyes go from pinched to wide as saucers. He blinks and looks down at his crotch, which is a smooth surface of shiny scales, free of bumps indicating the existence of his—

“It’s there,” Jaehyun says, although it sounds like he swallows the question mark at the end of his sentence at the last minute. Johnny makes it in time to meet his eyes before Jaehyun can catch him staring very hard at the other boy’s crotch. “I’m sure it’s there. They never fucking told me anything, those _assholes_ ,” Jaehyun murmurs to himself.

"Who are _they_?"

“The guy who turned me and the rest of the mermen in the Korean waters,” Jaehyun shifts, sitting straighter and adjusting so that his entire tailfin is submerged. He looks away with a frown, the gills behind his ears flaring, and sighs.

"Hey. I'm here. I'm listening, I'm not going anywhere," Johnny says when Jaehyun's face starts to become tense with stress again. Johnny reaches for Jaehyun's hand and perches on the edge of the tub. "I'm here. I'm here."

"You're not freaked out?" Jaehyun asks petulantly, like he doesn't believe Johnny. How _dare_ he.

"Of course I'm freaked out. But you're my friend. And you've been gone for so long I could listen to your voice all day, Jaehyun-ah."

That really comes out as too honest, but at least Jaehyun cracks a smile. His dimples—gosh, Johnny misses them so much—tentatively making their grand comeback. He shifts his hand so that their fingers are intertwined, and Johnny's a little breathless from how effortless it is for them to do that.

And then Jaehyun tells him. Recounts a story Johnny can't believe is real. Two weeks ago during the full moon, Jaehyun was lured into the sea and kidnapped by a merman. They go on these 'hunts' to lure people underwater when the tides are strong and high, and people drowning in sadness are always easy targets. Jaehyun happened to be there on the beach that night when a merman was swimming nearby. They turned him, in hopes that he was sad enough to not want to go back living on land.

"You were sad? What made you so sad that he could feel you, Jaehyun-ah? You weren't having a good time during the MT and you didn't tell me?" Johnny can't help but interrupt him. He's… angry and disappointed in himself for not noticing. If only he had stuck by Jaehyun's side more that night—

"I'm not sad anymore. I'm not sad anymore, hyung. It's not your fault," Jaehyun quickly says, gripping his hand tighter. "It's not your fault."

"But it is. Now you're… you're…"

"It's not a curse. It can be undone. We can talk about that later. Hyung, I'm just so glad you found me. There's nothing better than opening my eyes and seeing you there. I'm alright now. I'm not going anywhere."

“Promise?” Johnny asks, and he has to swallow because there’s a lump forming in his throat and he doesn’t know why.

Jaehyun studies his face for a moment before answering, “Promise. Thank you, hyung.”

The sincerity of Jaehyun’s words comes in warm waves that Johnny can almost physically feel. And the small yet genuine smile on his face, the beautiful dimples Johnny had feared that he wouldn’t get to see again, are on display. Johnny’s relief at seeing the familiar smile is so bone-deep he feels like someone cut the strings that’s been keeping him tense for weeks and weeks. He leans forward and puts his elbows on his knees, and buries his face in his hands as a sob escapes him.

The splash of water indicating urgent movements follows Jaehyun’s worried, “Johnny-hyung? What’s wrong?”

Behind the cover of his own hands Johnny lets a few more tears roll down his cheeks before taking a deep breath and wiping them away. From the corner of his eye he can see Jaehyun leaning over to look at his face, but Johnny can’t meet his gaze. Johnny takes his time calming down, long inhales and exhales. Jaehyun’s damp hands come up to hesitantly push behind his ear the dark strands of hair obscuring Johnny’s eyes from him. The gentle tips of his fingers are cool against Johnny’s hot cheeks.

“I do have an unhealthy obsession with water now, but this isn’t what I meant,” Jaehyun says as he lightly runs the pad of his thumb under Johnny’s eye.

Johnny can’t help but laugh. He finally finds the courage to angle his body towards Jaehyun, hunched over in his precarious perch on the edge of the tub. Jaehyun almost pulls away to make room for him, but Johnny grabs his wrist and presses Jaehyun's palm so that it rests fully on Johnny’s cheek.

Johnny takes his time finding his words. He uses it as an excuse to look at all the details on Jaehyun’s face without pretense. Nothing much has changed. It's Jung Jaehyun, his best friend. Still the shy boy whose life Johnny sort of forced his way into and didn't mind, the funny boy who makes it hard for Johnny to stop laughing at their own jokes. It’s still Jung Jaehyun, his best friend who Johnny thought had been lost to the waves, who haunted his dreams, whose absence was a physical pain.

Jaehyun’s eyes change from dark brown to silver under the sunlight that filters in through the ventilation high on the wall. His long lashes cast shadows on the flat planes of his upper cheeks. His lips, now deliciously moist with the perfect shade of dark pink, are slightly parted. Johnny is done trying to stop himself from kissing him, so he tilts Jaehyun’s face up to slot their mouths together.

Jaehyun’s fingers on Johnny’s cheek stiffened, a shocked gasp escaping him, and Johnny holds his breath, trying to drill into his memory the sensation of Jaehyun’s plush lips on his own and getting ready to pull away and say goodbye. But Jaehyun doesn’t push him away—his other hand comes up to pull Johnny closer, grabbing his nape, kissing him back fiercely. And it's no struggle to lose himself in the kiss. 

In fact, they both get so much into it that they forget they're trying to make out in a bathtub. So when Johnny's whole body goes all weak because of Jaehyun's little moan after their tongues meet, of course Johnny loses his balance and falls into the water like the fool he is. Water splashes everywhere, and Johnny's day-old jeans are wet in the butt and crotch area. And he's sideways on the tub, on Jaehyun's strong, muscly and scaly lap, holding on to the younger man's neck with a dumb expression on his face.

The water barely settles when Jaehyun's body shakes with chuckles, and it ripples when they both laugh out loud, because it's crazy and wonderful at the same time. It takes them a long time to calm down, and Johnny would have thought he's delirious if it wasn't for the very real and solid feeling of Jaehyun's body under his.

“I love you,” Johnny says, hurriedly, because what if he’s going to wake up soon? What if Jaehyun’s going to disappear again? What if there’s no other chance? “I love you so much, Jaehyun-ah. Please don’t leave. Please, please, _please._ ”

Jaehyun actually looks kind of stunned. And doubt is quick to surface in Johnny's mind but he waits. He waits for Jaehyun to arrange his thoughts, find his words. And perhaps there's nothing more wonderful than witnessing the smile blooming on his face, slowly but surely. Jaehyun smiles so wide his eyes disappear into twin crescent moons, his nose scrunching, his ears reddening. Johnny's never seen anyone so gorgeous.

Jaehyun pulls him close, and Johnny hugs him back the best he can with the awkward angle they're in, but it's perfect, it's all perfect when Jaehyun kisses him again, and says to his mouth, "I love you, too. Have been in love with you for a long time, hyung. I'll be here forever, if you let me."

  
  
  
  
  
  
  


**〰〰〰**

  
  
  


On the next full moon, Johnny is there on the same beach with Jaehyun. He spies several heads popping out of the water, while one breaks away from the group to approach Jaehyun who's half-submerged in the water. Johnny can't hear them, but he can see how every merman is so pretty, their skins glowing under the moonlight. The one talking to Jaehyun glances at Johnny and seems to purse his lips. Then he sees Jaehyun nodding, and suddenly they are kissing.

There's a strange feeling in Johnny's gut because first of all, why the fuck is that merman, presumably the one who turned Jaehyun in the first place, is kissing his boyfriend? Second of all… Jaehyun too, starts to glow, not unlike the way his legs would when he transforms. But that light soon disappears, and the merman pulls away. He pats Jaehyun's cheek, says something like a goodbye, then swims back into the water and disappears.

Johnny meets Jaehyun halfway, wrapping a fluffy towel and himself around the younger man. Jaehyun is smiling, and there's a lightness in his person that Johnny hasn't seen since he came back. 

"It's gone?" Johnny asks because he has to make sure.

"Yeah. I'm just plain old Jung Jaehyun now."

"Psh. Nothing about you is plain."

Jaehyun gives the corner of his lips a salty kiss.

As they make their way back to Johnny's emergency apartment, Johnny asks, "What did you talk about with that guy… uh, merman?"

"Just checking if I've fulfilled everything so that he could lift the spell. And said that they're never sorry about turning me. They said I owe it to them that I got my true love's kiss so quickly."

"What the… a _true love's kiss_?"

"Yeah. They wouldn't have been able to lift the spell without it. And then I'd be a merman forever and ever."

Johnny just blinks at him, because at this point he doesn't know if Jaehyun's fucking with him or not. It seems like the slyness of the mermen is still in him.

"But you do know that even if you're forever stuck as a merman, I'd still love you?"

This time it's Jaehyun who's at a loss of words. But then he smiles, cheeks dimpling and it's wonderful. "I know," he says. 

  
  
  


  
  


**Author's Note:**

> dw Johnny's taken so many pics of Jaehyun as a merman and if anyone asks, they'll tell people that it's for a project and that Johnny's editing skills are just outstanding
> 
>   
> I'm on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/then_coffee) where I talk about all the Johnny ships ;)  
> or find me on [curious cat](https://curiouscat.me/andthencoffee)!


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